End of Day 7 Beaufort NC to Antigua

These Blog entries are edited versions of the messages we sent back as we completed the passage. They were sent by radio using a laptop that controls a modem and the HF/SSB radio, using the SailMail system. We sent the messages daily to Charlotte and she then forwarded them on to a list of family members.

2359hrs (AST, GMT-4) 25 Nov 2019

Dear All,

We had a slight bit of excitement this morning when the Furlex on the genoa jammed when I let more sail out at dawn.  More sail did come out but the complete Furlex unit also turned, jamming up the control line even more.

Working on the genoa furling system on the wave-washed bow

That was a priority to fix which meant a trip to the wave-washed foredeck with some tools to loosen off the control drum, put it back to where it should be and then tighten everything up again.  Job done and I got a free bath in the process.  At least the bath water was warm with a sea temperature of 26.2 degrees Celsius.

The last 2 days have been all about sailing as far as we can before we hit the next no wind area which, according to the GRIB files we had downloaded, was due to occur during the afternoon of Tue 26 Nov.  For most of the past 2 days we have been hard on the wind which has made for a fast but bumpy ride and our last midday to midday distance run was 174.2nm (an average of 7.3 knots); particularly good for us, especially as we had reduced sail overnight.  Our plan was to stay hard on the wind for all of today and let the wind, which was forecast to back from the southwest to the south, bring us east towards our waypoint.  But, as seems to be happening a lot at the moment, the wind doesn't seem to be reading the same forecast as us.  At midday we were 35 miles right of our track and there was no sign of the wind backing, so we bore away from the wind to head directly for our waypoint.  The downside of that decision, and of the wind easing slightly, was that our speed dropped right off to just 4-5 knots.

However, with the turn towards our waypoint, BV sailed much more upright and so after lunch we seized the opportunity for a less bumpy shower; something that should never be missed when offshore sailing.

Not the expected sail plan

By mid-afternoon we were actually sailing directly downwind - the wind had veered to the northwest not backed to the south or southeast!

And now, as the final watch of the day starts, the wind has gone around to the northeast.  If it stays there, and particularly if it increases somewhat (it's only about 8kts at present) this would be a very helpful breeze.  But I suspect that it will be relatively short lived.  I guess that we'll just look at the next forecast, plan accordingly ........ and then react to whatever Mother Nature sees fit to throw at us.

And a final coda, just as the last watch of the day ends:  the wind didn't stay in the northeast.  It dropped away to just 4kts from the southeast - directly where we had been planning to head towards.  So Nicky downloaded tonight's GRIB files a bit early and made the decision to motor directly towards Antigua, rather than continuing to make easting.  It looks as if (we've said this before) the wind may fill in from the south, in which case we will head further east.  Then there's a period when we should be able to make progress under sail to the south and then the wind all goes light and whiffly (technical term) again.  We're 600nm from Antigua.  We don't have the fuel to motor all that way so if the wind doesn't come, at some point we will just have to stop to wait for it to arrive.  Happily, we have plenty of food on board so we won't go hungry.  But for the next 24 hours at least (unless we get wind sooner), we'll make progress in a direct line towards our destination and then see if Mother Nature can dig out some breeze-blowing cherubs to help us on our way.

Love to all,

Reg and Nicky 

Passage statistics:

Position at midday 25 Nov: N27 25 W64 40

Position at midnight 25 Nov: N26 46 W63 57

Midday to midday distance: 174 nautical miles

Midnight to midnight distance: 149 nautical miles

Total miles covered:  949 nautical miles

Approximate distance to go (direct line): 600 nautical miles

End of Day 7 - Beaufort North Carolina to Antigua